Child Sexual Abuser Pleads Guilty to Citizenship Fraud

NORFOLK, Va. – A Norfolk man pleaded guilty today to unlawfully obtaining United States citizenship.

According to court documents, Miguel Angel Reyes, 39, lied on various immigration forms while applying to become a naturalized United States citizen. Reyes lawfully entered the United States as a minor in 1994 from the Dominican Republic and obtained his legal permanent residence through his parents. By 2016, Reyes had enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in the Hampton Roads area. In May 2016, Reyes’s then wife reported to authorities that Reyes had sexually assaulted her two minor daughters. While Reyes was under investigation for those charges, he began the process of naturalizing as a United States Citizen and on multiple immigration forms and in multiple immigration interviews falsely denied that he had committed any crimes. Before Reyes pleaded guilty and was sentenced to prison for his offenses, his false statements led to him becoming a naturalized citizen.

Reyes pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful procurement of citizenship. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and mandatory loss of his United States citizenship when sentenced on March 9, 2021. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Raymond Villanueva, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C., made the announcement after Senior U.S. District Judge Robert G. Doumar accepted the plea. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph L. Kosky is prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:20-cr-84.